Laws and regulations have been adopted to require certain private and public buildings to implement automatic sprinkler systems. Automatic sprinkler systems generally include a plurality of sprinkler heads that are coupled to a water supply, via pipes and operated to extinguish flames with water in the event of a fire. Sprinkler heads are typically oriented in ceilings, walls or in other parts of a building to provide a predefined zone of protection. There are a variety of sprinkler heads available on the market today. One common sprinkler head includes a glass vial that is designed to expand and burst when exposed to heat. The glass vial bursts and activates the sprinkler system allowing water to extinguish the flames. The sprinkler system is often inspected to insure proper operation and to replace defective or damaged sprinkler heads. When it comes to painting the ceiling of buildings, painters are required to paint around the sprinkler heads being careful not to apply paint to the heads possibly clogging or fouling the operation of the sprinkler heads.
Painters generally utilize a variety of accessories to better assist them in painting both residential and commercial buildings. For example, painters use paintbrushes, stepladders, drop cloths, scrappers and paint trays when painting walls, doors, and windowpanes of buildings. Painters also utilize rollers and spray guns to efficiently paint ceilings of commercial buildings to cover a greater surface area in a shorter period of time when compared to paint brushes. When spraying the ceiling with paint, painters have to be cautious not to cover the sprinkler heads with paint. Applying paint to the sprinkler's glass vial can compromise the operative function of such devices. In addition, paint left on the outer rims of sprinkler heads dilutes the aesthetic appearance of a freshly painted ceiling. Upon inspection, building owners are often faced with having to replace painted or stained sprinkler heads thereby increasing the cost of parts and labor. To overcome the burden of indirectly applying paint to sprinkler heads, a variety of devices and methods have been adopted to assist painters in protecting sprinkler heads when painting ceilings.
One method involves wrapping each sprinkler head with a plastic wrap or bag. The method includes the use of masking tape and a thin plastic sheet where the plastic sheet is taped securely around each sprinkler head to cover the device. After the paint job is completed, the plastic wrap is simply torn off each sprinkler head. The method has proven to be time consuming and burdensome. In an effort to lessen the burden, paint guards have been developed to cover sprinkler heads. Some prior art paint guards include conical shaped devices including an open end and a closed end. Adhesive material is typically applied along the outer surface area of the guard's open end to permit the paint guard to stick to the annular rim of the sprinkler head. Such prior art paint guards however, provide limited use. For example, the adhesive material is often compromised during use thereby preventing a tight seal between the paint guard and annular rim of the sprinkler head. Paint mist enters the non-sealed areas allowing paint to come in contact with the sprinkler head. Also, when the paint guard is removed, the adhesive material often remains on the annular rim of the sprinkler head requiring the painter to use solvents to remove the residue. In addition, paint guards with adhesive are often used for one time only. The adhesive material deteriorates over time as a result of repeated use. Further, such paint guards require individuals to climb latters when installing each paint guard. The process of attaching conventional paint guards by hand is time consuming and dangerous.
Other conventional paint guards have been designed to help protect sprinkler heads of automatic sprinkler systems without the need of having to climb latters to install the paint guards. Such traditional paint guards generally comprise a guard including a cover having a threaded aperture, or a fastener opening. An installation tool comprising an elongated handle that includes a threaded end engages with the threaded aperture of the paint guard. A user inserts the threaded end of the tool into the threaded aperture of the paint guard and threads the tool onto the paint guard. After the paint guard is attached to a sprinkler head, the user unthreads the handle to detach the installation tool from the paint guard. Still other conventional paint guards include apertures that are formed within the body of the paint guard and adapted to receive the end of a tool. The end of the tool is simply inserted within the paint guard and the paint guard is lifted to the ceiling to cover a sprinkler head. The tool is either reinserted within the aperture in an attempt to remove each paint guard, or the painter must have access to a latter to reach each paint guard by hand.
Such conventional paint guards provide certain drawbacks. For example, a user must unthread the installation tool from the paint guard after the guard has been attached to the sprinkler head. The force in unthreading the installation tool often results in the paint guard detaching from the sprinkler head. Also threading and unthreading the installation tool to paint guards is time consuming. Conventional paint guards having non-threaded apertures formed in the body also pose a problem. For example, when elevating such paint guards to the ceiling, the paint guards often sway back and forth on the tip of the installation tool making it difficult to securely attach the paint guard over the sprinkler head. Also, after such conventional paint guards are installed over sprinkler heads, and the ceiling is painted, paint often enters the apertures of the paint guards thereby compromising the threads or blocking the aperture of the paint guards. The user has difficulty inserting the tip of the installation tool within the paint guard, or must resort to the use of a latter to remove the paint guards by hand. Thus, though conventional installation tools and paint guards alleviate the need of having to climb a latter to install the paint guards, the combinational use of such traditional paint guards and installation tools is time consuming, burdensome, and impractical to use.
What is desired is a paint guard and installation tool that is easy and practical to use, and provides a paint guard that attaches securely to annular rims of sprinkler heads to create a tight seal to prevent debris and paint from coming into contact with the sprinkler head. What is also desired is a paint guard and installation tool that provides painters a hands-free method of installing and removing paint guards from the floor without the need for climbing a latter or requiring assistance.